Putin Asks Parliament to Ease Citizenship Rules
December 01, 2005
Tajik migrant workers in the Russian city of Astrakhan (RFE/RL)
The bill will extend by two years the deadline for some citizens of former Soviet republics who are legally registered as residents in Russia to apply for fast-track citizenship. It will also expand the types of legal residents who are able to apply.
According to Russian officials, there are currently between 7 and 14 million illegal migrants in Russia, most of them from former Soviet republics.
The Federal Migration Service has announced a plan to legalize about 1 million illegal migrants next year.
(ITAR-TASS/yandex.ru)